Rating: 
Summary: Activation didn't work for me!
Review: I have read that Adobe will allow activation on two computers. However, when I tried to activate the software a second time on my laptop it wouldn't go through. My computer kept freezing up on me. I'm running Windows XP on my main machine as well as my laptop, so I wouldn't think there would be an issue. This proves that Adobe's activation process isn't as painless as they would like you to believe.
Rating: 
Summary: great upgrade... lots of new features!
Review: I love the combined raw converter, although some improvements would be nice its a good start. The highlight/shadow recovery tool can work wonders and even makes already good pictures better. I love the added B&W filters.... they make for some nice effects. Personally I had no trouble with automatic registration.... worked flawlessly. Check the features of the upgrade and if you'll use them... then the decision is easy... I am already very happy with it!
Rating:
Summary: Activation
Review: I ordered my upgrade from Amazon.com, feeling certain that Adobe would continue to provide high quality software. Yes, it's premium-priced, but it's always been worth it. So worth it that while I waited for the package to arrive, I downloaded the tryout program.Right from the start, I had problems. (And before I go any further, let me just say that this is not a resources issue. I have more than enough RAM, disk space and power to run this puppy.) It took forever to install and a long time to boot up. Finally I got it up and running, changed a few settings, including telling it where to look for my filters and plug-ins, shut it down and rebooted. And it refused to start. Told me a file was missing. So I tried again. Same error message. I reinstalled per their instructions. Booted up. Another crash, same error message. I don't really know how a file can be missing if I've just installed it. So I uninstalled everything, reinstalled (This is installation #3. It's going on an hour and a half now, between the download and the installation issues) and booted up. No problem. I pointed the program to my plug-ins directory, shut down and rebooted. Guess what? Yup, crashed on boot-up again, and again I got the file missing message. Long story short: Photoshop CS won't use or even recognize any of my plug-ins from PS7. None. While it offers nothing new in the way of its own filters, the plug-in gallery is a nice touch and too long in coming. Unfortunately if I have more than about 10Mb of images open doing anything in the gallery crashes the program. I'm sure there ae a lot of wonderful features in this program, but judging by my own experiences with the try out, and the customer reviews (I should have read them before ordering!) I can tell you that the package is going back as soon as it arrives. And if Adobe doesn't get its act together, it's lost me as a customer. And I've been a devoted user since PShop3.
Rating: 
Summary: Bitter disappointment from Adobe
Review: I ordered my upgrade from Amazon.com, feeling certain that Adobe would continue to provide high quality software. Yes, it's premium-priced, but it's always been worth it. So worth it that while I waited for the package to arrive, I downloaded the tryout program. Right from the start, I had problems. (And before I go any further, let me just say that this is not a resources issue. I have more than enough RAM, disk space and power to run this puppy.) It took forever to install and a long time to boot up. Finally I got it up and running, changed a few settings, including telling it where to look for my filters and plug-ins, shut it down and rebooted. And it refused to start. Told me a file was missing. So I tried again. Same error message. I reinstalled per their instructions. Booted up. Another crash, same error message. I don't really know how a file can be missing if I've just installed it. So I uninstalled everything, reinstalled (This is installation #3. It's going on an hour and a half now, between the download and the installation issues) and booted up. No problem. I pointed the program to my plug-ins directory, shut down and rebooted. Guess what? Yup, crashed on boot-up again, and again I got the file missing message. Long story short: Photoshop CS won't use or even recognize any of my plug-ins from PS7. None. While it offers nothing new in the way of its own filters, the plug-in gallery is a nice touch and too long in coming. Unfortunately if I have more than about 10Mb of images open doing anything in the gallery crashes the program. I'm sure there ae a lot of wonderful features in this program, but judging by my own experiences with the try out, and the customer reviews (I should have read them before ordering!) I can tell you that the package is going back as soon as it arrives. And if Adobe doesn't get its act together, it's lost me as a customer. And I've been a devoted user since PShop3.
Rating: 
Summary: If you need help- ask a friend
Review: I purchased the upgrade specifically for the RAW import feature. After installation, I was not able to import files from my Nikon D70 camera (.nef files), although the website claims to support this camera.
I could not find any help on the Adobe website, so I finally called support. The representive was not helpful (in fact rude) and wanted to charge me to get my program working as advertised.
Make sure you have an expert friend before buying- Adobe will not help you.
Rating:
Summary: Software is nice, but the activation stinks!
Review: I purchased this software not knowing that Adobe had implemented an activation scheme into this version of Photoshop. By the time I realized it, the software was already installing. Since the software was opened, I couldn't return it. I downloaded several new feature articles from Adobe's website before I purchased this product and none of them mentioned the newly added activation procedure. If I had known that Adobe had added activation to this product, I wouldn't have bought it and opted to stay with version 7. I really hope a lot of people complain to Adobe about this because the only people that will be inconvenienced by this will be the legit users who actually purchased the software. The pirates will soon have versions of Photoshop CS with the activation disabled to freely swap around-just like they do with Microsoft products right now. I'm not against companies trying to protect their property rights, but punishing its paying customers is not the way to go about doing it. If (like Adobe claims) activation will save the company millions of dollars a year that would be lost to piracy, then can we expect the savings to be passed on to us? Will future Adobe products cost half what they cost now? Don't hold your breath. Adobe is turning into another Microsoft-punishing its loyal paying customers while letting the criminals go free. I'm in a predicament because I need Photoshop to work. There just isn't another image editing software package that is as good or as widely supported. However, the company I work for started making the switch from Quark XPress to Adobe InDesign a little over a year ago. I'm going to do everything in my power to switch the company back to Quark and dump InDesign. Hey Adobe, you might have us on Photoshop, but we can still find other alternatives for page layout and illustration software! Add to that the fact that I'm also going to opt to stay with Photoshop 7 even though I purchased the CS upgrade. Version 7 will be the last version of Photoshop for me and the company I work for as long as Adobe puts activation into any of its software. When I did have Photoshop CS installed on my system I noticed that it took extremely long to load. The splash screen stays up for at least 60 seconds before the program will open. When it did finally open, I noticed that some of the tools in the tool bar were blocked out and there were lines running through some of the palettes. After doing some research on the internet I've concluded that there is an incompatibility between my graphics card and Photoshop CS. I'm running an NVIDIA GeForce3. I would suggest that you check your hardware for compatibility before purchasing this upgrade.
Rating: 
Summary: Activation is a pain, but . . .
Review: I too was up in arms about the introduction of activation and had decided not to purchase the product as I have two PCs in my home and I never know for sure when I will get kicked off one or the other by my kids. However, I decided to buy the product when I discovered that you can install and activate two copies. Here's the reference from Adobe's web site: Q: Can I activate Photoshop CS software on more than one computer?
A: The activation process supports installation on two machines. Adobe's Product License Agreement allows a user to install the product on a primary and a secondary computer as long as the product is not being used concurrently on the two machines. While the activation process supports installing and activation Photoshop CS on two machines, the usage of the product on the secondary computer is restricted to the main user who licensed the software. Allowing others to use Adobe software on a secondary computer violates the Product License Agreement. I think some folks who posted here are assuming you can only activate once based their comments. As for the software, I continue to be amazed at its features. I'm using it mainly to restore old family photos. I've been using the Photoshop 7 Classroom in a Book as I'm a newbie to Photoshop so I can't speak specifically to new features added in CS (hence the 4-star rating).
Rating:
Summary: Just say NO to activation
Review: I was just about to buy the software when I read the reviews and the fact that adobe has started using an activation scheme where your limited to one pc per install. Well I use my laptop as well to edit files with photoshop and what happens if your hard drive crashes? Do you have to beg for another install. I think it's time to just say NO to any product with activation.
Rating:
Summary: Don't worry: Activation is easy and flexible.
Review: I wasn't planning to add a review here, but I do feel the need to clear up some misinformation. Adobe's standard license agreement does allow you to install on two computer systems simultaneously, provided that you're not using both at the same time. This is specifically to allow the scenario that several other people here have mentioned: using Photoshop on both a laptop and a desktop computer. You are permitted multiple activations to allow for this, and, if you do run out of activations, Adobe's customer service department will be quite reasonable in granting extensions. If you purchase software with activation and it causes problems, don't hesitate to let the company know so that they can fix it. But don't stay away from the software based on misinformed rumors about how activation works. If you'd rather not trust me or anyone else writing reviews here, contact Adobe and find out for yourself prior to purchasing.
Rating:
Summary: "Picture Man 5" needs a U.S. importer.
Review: I'm awarding 2 stars on the strength of the negative reviews in this space and that Adobe has adopted the use of "activation".
* I've been searching hard for an honest-gosh 48 bit graphics program, but Photoshop --even "CS", appears to be 24 bits with 48 bit features. I can get by with the basic 48 bit histogram editing capability of Photoshop-5, after which I convert to selected 24 bit content and switch to another brand (Jasc PSP-8 or Mgfx PPub in versions 3.1 and 8). It would be nice to be able to do it all in one program, however, converting to 24 bits at the end (if needed for the output).
Check it out: Picture Man 5 from "Stoik" sounds great, but I don't want to risk my credit card or depend on an outfit in Moscow (Russia) for support. (My e-mail to them bounced.)
Craig
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